MEANING OF RESEARCH

•Research in common jargon refers to a

search for knowledge.
•Research is a careful investgaton or
inquiry specially through search for new
facts in any branch of knowledge.
•Research is a “systematied efort to
gain new knowledge.
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Some people consider research as a movement,
a movement from the known to the unknown.
It is actually a journey of discovery. We all
possess the vital instnct of curiosity for, when
the unknown confronts us, we wonder and our
curiosity makes us probe and atain full and
fuller understanding of the unknown. This
curiosity is the mother of all knowledge and the
method, which man employs for obtaining the
knowledge of whatever the unknown, can be
termed as research.
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Research is, thus, an original contributon to the
existng stock of knowledge making for its
advancement. In short, the search for knowledge
through objectve and systematc method of
fnding soluton to a problem is research. The
systematc approach concerning generaliiaton and
the formulaton of a theory is also research.
 OBJECTIVES OF RESEARCH
The purpose of research is to discover answers to
questons through the applicaton of scientfc
procedures. The main aim of research is to fnd out
the truth which is hidden and which has not been
discovered as yet. Though each research study has
its own specifc purpose and research objectves may
falling into a number of following broad groupings:
•To gain familiarity with a phenomenon or to achieve
new insights into it (studies with this object in view
are termed as exploratory or formulatve research
studies).
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•To describe accurately the characteristcs of a
partcular individual, situaton or a group (studies
with this object in view are known as descriptve
research studies)
•To determine the frequency with which something
occurs or with which it is associated with something
else (studies with this object in view are known as
diagnostc research studies)
•To test a hypothesis of a causal relatonship
between variables (such studies are known as
hypothesis-testng research studies).
 MOTIVATION IN RESEARCH
The possible motves for doing research may be either one or more of
the following:
1. Desire to get a research degree along with its consequental benefts
2. Desire to face the challenge in solving the unsolved problems, i.e.,
concern over practcal problems initates research
3. Desire to get intellectual joy of doing some creatve work
4. Desire to be of service to society
5. Desire to get respectability.
However, this is not an exhaustve list of factors motvatng
people to undertake research studies. Many more factors such as
directves of government, employment conditons, curiosity
about new things, desire to understand causal relatonships,
social thinking and awakening, and the like may as well motvate
(or at tmes compel) people to perform research operatons.
 Good Research
Purpose clearly defned
Research Process detailed
Research Design thoroughly planned
Limitatons frankly revealed
High ethical standards applied
Adequate analysis for decision-maker’s needs
Findings presented clearly
Conclusions justfed
Researcher’s experience refected
 Types of Research
Applied vs. Fundamental: Research can either be applied
(or acton) research or fundamental (to basic or pure)
research. Applied research aims at fnding a soluton for an
immediate problem facing a society or an
industrial/business organiiaton, whereas fundamental
research is mainly concerned with generaliiatons and
with the formulaton of a theory.“Gathering knowledge for
knowledge’s sake is termed ‘pure’ or ‘basic’
research.”Research concerning some natural phenomenon
or relatng to pure mathematcs are examples of
fundamental research. Similarly, research studies,
concerning human behavior carried on with a view to make
generalizatons about human behavior, are also examples
Descriptve vs. Analytcal: Descriptve research
includes surveys and fact-fnding enquiries of diferent
kinds. The major purpose of descriptve research is
descripton of the state of afairs as it exists at present.
The main characteristc of this method is that the
researcher has no control over the variables; he can
only report what has happened or what is happening.
The methods of research utliied in descriptve
research are survey methods of all kinds, including
comparatve and correlaton methods. In analytcal
research, on the other hand, the researcher has to use
facts or informaton already available, and analyie
these to make a critcal evaluaton of the material.
Quanttatve vs. Qualitatve: Quanttatve research is based
on the measurement of quantty or amount. It is applicable
to phenomena that can be expressed in terms of quantty.
Qualitatve research, on the other hand, is concerned with
qualitatve phenomenon, i.e., phenomena relatng to or
involving quality or kind. For instance, when we are
interested in investgatng the reasons for human behavior
(i.e., why people think or do certain things),we quite ofen
talk of ‘Motvaton Research’, an important type of
qualitatve research. This type of research aims at
discovering the underlying motves and desires, using in
depth interviews for the purpose. Other techniques of such
research are word associaton tests, sentence completon
tests,